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The miscellaneous objects in this gallery were formerly in the James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection (Chicago). The strength of the collection is clearly the sculpture. Many Indian, Himalayan and South Asian objects in the Art Institute of Chicago collection were gifts of Mr. and Mrs. Alsdorf. What is presented here is only a small part of the complete collection which is now mostly dispersed. (The objects will be catalogued over the next few weeks).

One of the most beautiful pieces is the Manjushri figure from Kashmir, dated to the 10th century, 5 1/4 inches tall (13.4 cm). The body is well modeled and the rounded musculature and sculpted features are clearly visible. Note the silver inlay eyes. The iconography is some what unusual with the left hand holding both the Prajnaparamita book and the stem of an utpala flower which in turn supports a bowl. The tip of the sword is marked with a half vajra. The legs are in a relaxed posture with the right over left.

In the Sutra tradition of Mahayana Buddhism the bodhisattva Vajrapani is regarded as one of the Eight Heart-sons of Shakyamuni Buddha and portrayed in a peaceful appearance. In the tradition of Vajrayana Buddhism, Vajrapani is typically shown in a wrathful form and further known as Guhyapati - 'the Lord of Secrets.' Historically he is the main recipient, holder and protector of all the Tantra texts and teachings received from the Buddha Shakyamuni (in the appearance of Vajradhara). From the model of the Lower Tantras Vajrapani symbolizes the body of all buddhas of the ten directions and three times and represents enlightened activity. The bodhisattva Manjushri represents mind and Avalokiteshvara that of speech. In Tantric practice Vajrapani is a meditational deity, a Buddha, with numerous forms found in all of the four levels of Tantra classification and popular in all traditions of Tibetan Buddhism - new and old.

The two wrathful forms of Vajrapani known as the Sutra Tradition (do lug) and the Nilambhara (dro zang lug) generally do not have skull crowns or wrathful ornaments such as the fifty freshly severed heads. Mahachakra Vajrapani is sometimes depicted with a skull crown and at other times shown with a jeweled crown. They do however wear the eight races of nagas depicted as snakes - bracelets, anklets, etc. Almost all of the other wrathful forms of Vajrapani have the same fearsome regalia as typical of wrathful Tantric deities such as Vajrabhairava, Vajrakila, Mahakala and the like.

Gesar is a folk hero of Eastern Tibet and predominantly known through literature and live performance. He is believed to have lived around the 10th century. The stories of Gesar, epic in size, are brought to life through dramatic performances, song and public readings of his many adventures. It is quite possibly the longest epic poetry in the world. Despite the popularity of all of this there is relatively little found in the way of art: paintings, murals and sculpture. What objects are known are also dated very late - 19th and 20th centuries. In the 19th century a Nyingma teacher of East Tibet, Mipam Jamyang Namgyal Gyamtso (1846-1912), further popularized Gesar but as a Buddhist religious figure - a deity - creating rituals, meditations and even a divination system with a one month required retreat. Most of the art objects that are currently known appear to be related or inspired by the writings of Mipam.

There are three sets of early Gesar life story paintings known to exist: Le Guimet in Paris with 10 paintings (?), Sichuan Provincial Museum with 11 paintings and the Rubin Museum of Art in New York with one painting. The Guimet set was acquired in approximately 1910 and the Sichuan Museum set in approximately the mid part of the last century. The first two sets are almost identical and obviously copies from the same composition. It is not yet determined which is the earlier of the two sets or whether they were both copied from another (3rd) master set. However both sets can be safely dated to prior to 1910.

The central subject of the Rubin Museum painting is of the uncle of Gesar and obviously from a larger set of compositions depicting all of the major cast of characters in the life story. Aside from the images depicted on HAR there is a single painting depicting Gesar and the eight retinue generals in the collection of the Sichuan University and another two in a private collection in Chengdu. At least two sculpture of Gesar are also known. Both are of the same subject - a peaceful figure, wearing a tall cylindrical hat, seated on a cushion with one leg extended. There are many modern Gesar images in painting and sculpture. Undoubtedly more objects with a slightly less than modern provenance will be located in other collections - institution or private.

The general depiction of Gesar is of a Tibetan warrior, atop a horse, clad in armor and a helmet with elaborate flag pennants and streamers, accompanied by eight horseman. This description is almost identical to that of Dralha 'Enemy God'. It is very easy to confuse the two subjects of Gesar and Dralha. Also look at another similar figure (HAR #73433) which is not yet identified.

Painting Sets:

1. Le Guimet, Paris, France

2. Sichuan Provincial Museum, Chengdu, China (11 paintings)

3. Rubin Museum of Art, New York, USA (1 painting)

Deities with a Kila lower body are not so rare in Tantric Buddhism. All of the example listed here are either 'Pure Vision' or 'Revealed Treasure' teachings.

Milarepa has a very distinctive look and posture. He can easily be confused with a number of other Tibetan figures that are considered to be his later incarnations, such as Ngagwang Lobzang Tanpa'i Gyaltsen and Shabkar (both from Amdo). In Tibetan Buddhist religious history there are dozens of incarnation lines (tulku) that claim to be descended from the famous yogi and singer Milarepa.

Guru Dragpur (English: Wrathful Teacher of the Peg): fierce form of Guru Rinpoche Padmasambhava discovered as a Revealed Treasure 'Terma' by Drugchen Padma Karpo (1527-1592) - based on the meditational deity Guru Dragpo.

There are a number of different forms of Guru Dragpur that have developed after the original discovery of Padma Karpo. An example is the three faced six armed Drigung form of the deity.

Padma Karpo was not the first person to put a kila peg on the lower torso of a deity. Aside from the early examples from the source Vajrakilaya depictions we have the Bon example of Purba Drugse Chempa. There are also the other early 'Pure Vision' examples of Simhamukha with a kila lower body originating with a teacher from Bodong Monastery, later followed by Longsal Nyingpo and his discoveries, along with the discoveries of many other Nyingma teachers. (See the Vajrakila: Confusions in Identification Outline).

Description: Very wrathful in appearance, Guru Dragpur is red in colour, with one face and three round eyes, he has a gaping mouth with bared fangs and flaming hair rising upward. The right hand held aloft firmly grasps a gold vajra scepter and the left a black scorpion - both arms extended to the sides. Adorned with a crown of five skulls, gold earrings, bracelets, necklaces and a snake garland, he wears a string of human heads. An elephant hide covers the shoulders with a tiger skin wrapped about the waist. Without legs, the lower body is composed of a large black kila (Tibetan: phur ba), three edged peg, extending downward from the gaping mouth of a makara sea creature. Standing on a triangular base adorned with skulls, above a sun disc and lotus blossom, he is surrounded by the swirling flames of pristine awareness.

Guru Dragpo, originating in the 'Revealed Treasure' Tradition of the Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism, is a wrathful meditational form of Padmasambhava. Although technically a guruyoga practice the function of Guru Dragpo is that of an ishtadevata (meditational deity). Following after the early meditational deities of the Guhyagarbha Tantra and Eight Heruka then this practice of Guru Dragpo is likely the most popular and the most represented in art. In the 16th century the teacher Padma Karpo popularized a variation on Guru Dragpo called Guru Dragpur - principally practiced in the Drugpa Kagyu School.

Forms & Types:

1. Single (one face, two arms)

2. Single (with consort)

3. Heruka (three faces, six arms, consort)

4. Karma Guru Heruka (without consort)

5. Tarig Terma Tradition (with consort)

6. Others...

Dakinis, depending on  religious tradition and specific literature, can be female nature spirits, witches, or deities assisting in spiritual development. Originally dakinis were very low ranked Indian spirits. In Tantric Buddhism a classification of meditational deity are also called dakini (Vajra Dakini, Vajrayogini, etc.).

Dakini are a curious phenomena of Buddhist Tantra that appear to have developed out of the Chakrasamvara literature and other related texts loosely catalogued as belonging to the Wisdom or Mother Tantras (of the Sarma Traditions: Kadam, Sakya, Kagyu, Jonang, Gelug). The definitions and explanations of Dakinis is very different between the various schools and traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. In the Sarma Schools it is predominatly the Chakrasamvara Tantras that refer to female retinue figures as dakini. In the Father and Non-dual Tantras (Hevajra included) the term goddess is preferred for female deities, such as Hevajra and the Eight Goddesses (devi).

The Nyingmapa tradition is the most invested and uses the term dakini as a title for any fully enlightened female deity, occaisionally for real female teachers, or any other number of female spirits related to Buddhist practice, or the path. Goddess and dakini appear to be interchangeable terms with dakini being superior, or preferred.

Weird & Off Topics: this page offers a list of topics that don't always fit with the rest of the subjects on the HAR website. Some topics are just too specific and others are a little weird, nontraditional, or maybe a little sacrilegious.


- Animal Headed Gods & Deities

- Animals Outline Page

- Art Depicted in Art

- Confusions in Iconographic Identification

- Divination: Form & Function

- Exhibition & Concept Planning

- Men with Beards

- Metaphor & Simile Outline

- Number Sets Outline Page

- Poisoned or Murdered

- Quickguides: Museums, Cities & Collections

- Resource Tools

- Snakes & Serpents Outline Page

- Trees Outline Page

- War, Conflict & Strife, Outline Page

- Weird & Fantastical Gods & Deities

- Women with Beards

- Yoga Outline Page

- Yoga Postures

Poisoned or Murdered is a quick reference to keep track of all of those people and stories that have a strong aspect of tragedy, murder and death. In Tantric Buddhism a 'morally justified' killing is called a 'liberation.' Many of the stories listed are controversial even to this day. Some have become very confused over time such as the murder of King Ligmincha. The Bonpo actually believe it was King Trisong Detsen that committed the deed but the actual annexation of Zhangzhung took place in Songtsen Gampo's reign - not Trisongdetsen.

Histories also diverge and the narrative of one tradition gets woven into the narrative of another such as the death of Dharmadode, the son of Marpa Lotsawa. According to the Kagyu Tradition generally it is said that Marpa Chokyi Lodro did not have the proper merit to found a family lineage of Dharma practice as predicted by the siddha Naropa. The tradition of Rwa Lotsawa narrates how Rwa Dorje Drag and Dharmadode entered into a Tantric competition each claiming that their own practice, Vajrabhairava versus Hevajra, was more powerful than the other. In effect they dueled to the death - the death of Dharmadode - despite Milarepa being at his side at the moment of passing.

Each one of these stories, of which there are probably dozens more, is interesting, historically thought provoking, and pushes at the edges of what is acceptable and what is not. They have everything that a good Buddhist narrative should have, a dose of truth, a lot of hagiography, whimsy and - most importantly - open to interpretation.

Shakyamuni Buddha is found in this list because he supposedly passed away from eating bad or poisoned pork? The significance of this is that some later stories adopted this same scenario and used it as a particular element in a Buddhist genre of death narrative - a kind of nobility through poisoning.

Vajrakila is one of the Eight Heruka Deities of the Nyingma Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. His main attribute is a kila peg held in the first pair of six hands. In the mandala of Vajrakila some of the surrounding retinue figures have a lower torso of a three-sided peg (kila). The confusion in identification arises when anything with a kila shape is labelled as the deity Vajrakila. Four iconographic subjects have the lower torso of a kila[1] Vajrakila retinue figures, [2] the Bon deity Purba Drugse Chempa, [3] Guru Dragpur in various forms and [4] Simhamukha in various forms. (See meditational forms of Padmasambhava where Guru Dragpur and Simhamukha are both included).

Simhamukha means 'lion-faced' and refers principally to three unrelated deities in Tantric Buddhism. The first appears most prominently as a central figure whereas the other two are always secondary in position. As a meditational deity Simhamukha is associated with the [1a] Chakrasamvara Tantra and [1b] as a 'Terma' discovery of the Nyingma Tradition. [2] Simhamukha is a retinue deity belonging to the One Hundred Peaceful and Wrathful Deities of the Guhyagarbha Tantra. [3] Simhamukha is the second attendant figure belonging to the retinue of Shri Devi Magzor Gyalmo. All three of these deities, although similar in appearance with the lion face, are unrelated as to origin, function and hierarchy.

Vajrapani in the form of Bhutadamara is found in a number of different Tantra texts principally the Bhutadamara Tantra (Charya), the Vajrapanjara Tantra (Anuttarayoga and the Vajradakini Tantra (Anuttarayoga). He typically has four hands with the first pair held at the heart in the demon subduing gesture. The only difference between the first two examples are the supine forms underneath the two Vajrapanis. In the first form the figure underfoot has an elephant face. In the second form it is the regular face of a deity. The third form of Bhutadamara is unusual because he does not perform the usual demon subduing gesture which is the Bhutadamara trademark in the earlier examples, instead he holds a vajra, skullcup, banner, a bow and arrow - all in four hands. In paintings, the third form is only found in the company of Maharakta Ganapati (as the central figure).

White Manjushri and White Tara are identical in body posture but not in what they hold. Manjushri has the two attributes of a book on top of an utpala flower held in the left hand. White Tara simply holds a white lotus in the left hand. Of the two common forms of White Tara, with one face and two hands, the more famous of the two has seven eyes on the body: three on the face, two on the palms of the hands, two on the soles of the feet. The Atisha form of White Tara only has the standard two eyes (not on the hands and feet). Note how the face of the male Manjushri figure has a more square face with a flat horizontal hairline. The female figure of Tara has an oval face almost egg-shaped. In Himalayan art, observing the shape of the face is the quickest way to identify male and female figures especially for art created after the 16th century.

Although White Manjushri, who is classified by function as a wisdom deity (see outline), or wisdom producing deity, and White Tara, classified as a long-life deity (see outline), are essentially unrelated except for both belonging to the Kriya classification of Tantra (see outline) - a system of classifying all Buddhist Tantras into four levels based on complexity: [1] Kriya, [2] Charya, [3] Yoga and [4] Anuttarayoga.

A new Tangtong Gyalpo Outline Page has been added to the site. It is a work in progress and there are still more images to locate and catalogue aswell as additional links to connect.

Tangtong Gyalpo Tsondru Zangpo (1385/61-1464/85) typically appears as an old man with long white hair, a long white beard, and depicted in a seated posture. Sometimes he is shown with a very dark complexion - dark brown. There are no typical hand attributes for Tangtong Gyalpo, but, he sometimes holds a medicinal pill in the upraised right hand, or a link of chain in the right hand - extended across the knee. The left hand can hold a skullcup in the lap, a long-life vase, or a combination of the two. He is generally depicted in a very relaxed seated posture, the feet bare.

The dates of Tangtong Gyalpo are not precisely known because of the different sources of the time not being in agreement (1385/61-1464/85). He can however be easily placed in the 14th/15th century because of the historical accounts of people that he met and the accounts of people who met him.

Tangtong Gyalpo was famous for building iron bridges throughout Tibet as well as creating many new medicinal formulas for both healing and longevity. Many of these formulas are still used today. Tangtong Gyalpo is credited with the invention of Tibetan opera (theatre) known as Achi Lhamo. It is thought by some that he developed opera as a way of funding his various bridge building projects. Others dismiss the idea entirely and find no relationship between Tangtong Gyalpo and Achi Lhamo.

Tangtong Gyalpo was very closely related to both the Sakya and Shangpa Kagyu Traditions. He is even aknowledged as the founder or patriarch of a specific line of Shangpa known as the Chagzam Lineage. Most of the written works of Tangtong Gyalpo, of which there are not many, are  meditational practices of various sorts that he developed based on 'Pure Vision' experiences gained at particular locations throughout Tibet. The other written materials are works related to Shangpa Kagyu meditation practices. Within the Nyingma Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism there is a vast corpus of literature alleged to be from the hand of Tangtong Gyalpo dealing with the many 'Revealed Treasure' teachings he uncovered during his lifetime and many travels throughout Tibet.

The two iconographic figures of Krishna Yamari and Yama Dharmaraja are often confused with each other, conflated, and subsequently misidentified.

There are a number of different forms of Krishna Yamari from a six faced six armed deity to a one face two armed form. All forms of Krishna Yamari are meditational deities. The confusions in identification primarily involve the simple [1] one faced form of Yamari, the [2] one faced Heruka form of Vajrabhairava and the depiction of the protector deity [3] Yama Dharmaraja in his outer form. It is these last three which are most commonly confused, conflated and misidentified.

In the graphic reference the top row of figures are the four principal forms of Krishna Yamari from most complicated on the left to simplest on the right. The bottom row highlights the confusion. The first image on the left in the bottom row of the graphic is the buffalo faced Heruka. He is the simplified meditational form of Vajrabhairava with nine faces and thirty-four hands. This form of Heruka is often mistaken for Yama Dharmaraja. On the right hand side is Yama Dharmaraja, the special protector deity exclusive to the Vajrabhairava Tantra. He appears very much like Krishna Yamari in the simple form with one face and two and holding the same attributes of a staff and lasso. Yama Dharmaraja is always accompanied by the consort Chamundi whereas the simple form of Krishna Yamari has no consort.

(The majority of images used for the graphic are detail images from a Vajrabhairava mandala belonging to the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco. It is really a fantastic example of a great work that exemplifies both high art and precise iconography).

A new Nyingma Heruka Outline Page has been added to the Nyingma Heruka Main Page.

The early Nyingma Tradition had two principal systems of deity meditation: [1] the Peaceful & Wrathful Deities of the Guhyagarbha Tantra and [2] the Eight Pronouncement Heruka. Over time and with the rise of the 'Revealed Treasure' (Terma) teachings numerous [3] meditational forms of Padmasambhava grew in popularity essentially creating an additional third category of deity meditation types.

[1] Peaceful & Wrathful Deities of the Guhyagarbha Tantra (Shitro)

[2] Eight Pronouncement Heruka (Kagye)

[3] Meditational forms of Padmasambhava (Terma)

In the Nyingma Tradition the term Heruka (blood drinker) generally refers to any male-meditational deity, wrathful in appearance, typically with three faces, six arms, four legs, wings and a consort. There are eight famous Nyingma Heruka deities. Aside from those principal eight deities other deities with a semi-peaceful - semi-wrathful appearance, arising from specific Revealed Treasure Traditions, may also be referred to as Heruka.

Eight Pronouncement Heruka:

1. Yamari (Manjushri Krodha) - body - Manjushrimitra.

2. Hayagriva - speech - Nagarjuna.

3. Shri Heruka - mind - Humkara.

4. Vajramrita - quality - Vimalamitra.

5. Vajrakila - activity - Padmasambhava.

6. Mamo Botong (Matarah) - Dhanasamskrita.

7. Jigten Choto (Lokastotrapuja) - Rambuguhya.

8. Mopa Dranag (Vajramantrabhiru) - Shantigarbha.

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9. Mahottara Heruka

The Art Depicted In Art Main Page has been updated with new galleries, images and links. A new Art Depicted In Art Outline Page has also been added to the site.

The two iconographic figures of Acharya Nagarjuna and Nagaraja Buddha both have a hood of seven snakes. Nagarjuna is also one of only three human figures to have an ushnisha, a buddha crown protuberance, on the top of the head. This makes it very difficult to differentiated between Nagarjuna and Nagaraja. In painted compositions Nagaraja typically has a white face and a blue body. Nagaraja can also perform either the teaching gesture with the two hands or his own unique gesture with the two index fingers held together at the heart and pointing upwards. Shakyamuni Buddha in a life-story episode is also protected from the weather by a snake (naga) with either a single or multiple heads. Those depictions of Shakyamuni are found in the sets of life-story paintings.

Tsang Nyon Heruka (1452-1507) was a Tibetan teacher who took the Tantric literature quite literally and behaved and dressed as a Tantric deity wearing bone ornaments, cemetery ashes, and long unshorn hair. This type of radical behaviour is described as an advanced form of practice in the Hevajra and Chakrasamvara Tantras. It is rare for Tibetan teachers to appear in this way which has given rise to the constant mis-identification of Tsang Nyon Heruka as an Indian mahasiddha rather than as a Tibetan teacher. The unique visual characteristics of Tsang Nyon are [1] the vajra scepter held in the right hand, often upraised, with a [2] skullcup or long-life vase cradled in the left hand. These are unique attributes and not shared with any of the well known mahasiddhas, or siddhas within the systems of Eighty-four Mahasiddhas.